This invention is related to pharmaceutical formulations comprising antiviral aromatic polycyclic dione compounds and methods of use thereof.
For many years the field of antiviral therapy has sought drugs that are capable of killing the invading pathogens without harming the host cell. The ability of viruses to physically invade a cell and to usurp the biochemical mechanisms of the cell in order to propagate their progeny, presents few unique biochemical features that can form the basis for selective inhibition of such viruses. Only a few compounds are known to possess selective antiviral activity. In particular, there are a wide variety of antiviral therapeutic agents, such as azidothymidine (AZT), dideoxycytidine, acyclovir, ribavirin, and vibaradine, which owe their selective toxicity to the fact that they can inhibit viral functions more efficiently than they can inhibit cellular functions. In general, these agents are targeted against viral polymerases, phosphorylases, and nucleotide kinases. The use of these drugs is limited due to their narrow spectrum of antiviral activity and their toxic side effects when administered systemically to a host organism over long periods of time.
Interferons are antiviral polypeptides which are currently in experimental therapeutic use in humans. However, their therapeutic value appears limited at the present time. The production and purification of human interferons require tedious procedures, the available quantities are limited and cytotoxic effects are also known to occur.
Recently it has become of great importance to find agents that are active against retroviruses, and in particular Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) which is responsible for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
Therefore, the art is constantly seeking new antiviral agents and in particular agents that are effective against retroviruses, which display high virus killing power with low cellular toxicity and have proven to be resistant to many conventional anti-viral agents.